دار الخليج

Taiwan ex-president heads to China pledging peace

Ma is visit ing in a private capacity, bringing a delegat ion of academics and college students for exchanges

Former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou departed for a tour of China on Monday, in what he called an atempt to reduce tensions a day ater Taiwan lost one of its few remaining diplomatic partners to China.

The ex-president is visiting in a private capacity, bringing a delegation of academics and college students for exchanges, as well as members of his family, but the trip is loaded with political meaning.

Ma’s policies brought Taiwan and Beijing to their closest relationship ever, but his exit from office was overshadowed by massive protests against a trade deal with the mainland and his successor has focused on bolstering ties with the US and defending the autonomy of the democratically governed island that China claims as part of its own territory.

Current President Tsai Ing-wen is expected to launch a 10-day diplomatic tour of her own on Wednesday, ostensibly to visit the island’s remaining allies in Latin America.

She will stop in the US, Taiwan’s biggest unofficial partner and supplier of arms.

Ma’s visit comes amid rising tensions. Beijing has stepped up pressure against Taiwan in recent years, poaching its diplomatic allies while also sending military fighter jets flying towards the island on a near daily basis.

On Sunday, Honduras established diplomatic relations with China, leaving Taiwan with only 13 countries that recognise it as a sovereign state.

Ma, a member of the opposition Nationalist Party (Kuomingtang), will land in Shanghai before starting his visit in nearby Nanjing.

He is expected to tour the mainland from March 27 to April 7, stopping in Wuhan and Changsha, as well as other cities.

He is bringing college students from Taiwan to meet with fellow students from Shanghai’s Fudan University and Changsha’s Hunan University.

Ma has framed the visit as a bid to lower the tensions in cross-strait relations through people to people exchange.

“I hope through the enthusiasm of the youth and their interactions to improve the cross-strait mood, so bring peace faster, and earlier,” he said to reporters ahead of his departure on Monday aternoon. He also said it would be his first time visiting China.

His trip has not drawn much controversy in Taiwan, where the public is used to seeing Kuomingtang politicians visit China.

However, it has been criticised by some political opponents and activists.

A former mainland student leader in the 1989 Tiananmen square protests called on Ma to cancel his trip.

“If you have even a strand of affection for Taiwan... you should announce the cancellation of your trip,” said Wang Dan, a Chinese dissident who previously lived in Taiwan, on his Facebook page.

ASIA

en-ae

2023-03-28T07:00:00.0000000Z

2023-03-28T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://daralkhaleej.pressreader.com/article/281711208904143

Dar AlKhaleej